Essence & Catrice Haul + Goodie Bag Show

Last April, you know I was invited to an Essence and Catrice event where us bloggers were introduced to the new products they launched locally. As usual, the people behind the brand here always make sure to give us a lot of products to take home and try out so in this post I will show you all the products that I got at the event as well as stuff that I bought myself. Let me know which products you would like me to review first :)

Essence

So first up is the much sought after Cinderella Trend Edition of which I only got three items - highlighter powder, a glitter topper nail polish and a nail polish. I skipped the blush and lipglosses because I have similar shades and the eyeshadow palette didn't receive very good reviews from overseas bloggers so I didn't really care for it. Unfortunately all nail polishes were gone save for the ones I got which were actually the last ones on the stand.

The highlighter powder (€3.50) comes in just one shade, 01 The Glass Slipper and I really love the embossed roses design and the pearly pink colour which is totally unique, in my collection at least. As for the glitter topper (€2.10), it also bears the name 01 The Glass Slipper and it has large and smaller silver hex glitters in an iridescent lilac base. The other nail polish (€2.10) is actually a very unique shade and I own nothing quite like it. It is called 04 Watch Out Lady Tremaine and I would describe it as a gold-based platinum-peridot kind of colour with a slight hint of pewter - it is really unique and worth having in your collection.

Next I have some eye products starting with eyeshadows of course. Essence have relaunched their mono eyeshadows with a new design and improved texture. There are 16 shades in all and here I have four to show you. The top three are in tester packaging but the actual packaging is that of the bottom one.

04 I'm Blushing*

06 Pippa Mint*

08 Apricotta*

15 Hazel Me Not!*

Also from the new eye products range, I have the How To Make Brows Wow Makeup Box* which has everything you need to achieve perfect brows, no matter how dark or light your hair is!

Now next are the Effect Eyeshadows and Gel Eye Pencil Waterproof which are not new but it is m first time trying them and I can say that I really like both of these products! The Effect Eyehsadows (€3.00 each) I have are 01 Egypt's Treasure, 02 Brazil's Sunset, 03 Indian Lifestyle and 06 UK's Stonehenge. On the other hand, the Gel Eye Pencil (€2.40 each) shades I have are 03 Urban Jungle, 04 Blue Lagoon and 06 Cocoa Bean.

More new eye products come in then form or an Easy 2 Use Eyeliner Pen* and a Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara*. I have high expectations from the latter product and I have also bought the older 'volume' version (€3.29) to see how they compare.

Moving on to lips, I have two lipsticks from the Long Lasting Lipstick Nude range and two XXXL Nude Lipglosses. The lipsticks are 01 Wearing Only A Smile* and 03 Come Naturally* while the liplgosses are 01 Shy Beauty* and 03 Taste The Sweets*. These are probably my favourite products from the whole bunch and I really like pairing them together. The Essence Silky Touch Blush in the shade 90 Summer Dreaming* is next on the list. While the Silky Touch Blush range is not new in itself, this shade is the latest addition to the collection and I really like this for summer.

I purchased two Essence Lip Liners after all the hype they seem to get and I am really satisfied with them! I got the shades 05 Soft Berry and 15 Honey Berry for €1.10 each.

I'm really happy I found the Powder Brush (€3.10) and Blush Brush (€3.00) just because they look so pretty in their new packaging and for the same reason, I want to get my hands on the other brushes in the set as well. I also bought a dual sharpener for just €0.99.

The last thing I want to share with you from Essence are nail polishes. They have revamped the Colour & Go range and it now goes by the name of The Gel Nail Polish. They even have a specific base and top coat to go with the range. Moreover, there are new ranges such as the I Love Trends The Nudes and a tone of new nail art items which I can't wait to get my hands on!

The Gel Nail Polish Base Coat*

The Gel Nail Polish Top Coat*

The Gel Nail Polish 04 Our Sweetest Day*

The Gel Nail Polish 11 4ever Young*

The Gel Nail Polish 25 Prince Charming*

I Love Trends The Nudes 05 Pure Soul*

I Love Trends The Nudes 07 Hope For Love*

However, while they are still on display, I bought four of the old Colour & Go Polishes for €1.70 each, 178 Hello Spring!, 180 It's Raining Men!, 190 Kiss Me, Freddy and 196 I Heart My Blue Jeans as well as the Better Than Gel Nails Top Sealer High Gloss (€3.07), Studio Nails XXL Nail Thickener (€1.90), Studio Nails Caring Nail Oil, Nail Art Special Effect Topper 19 Bird Of Paradise and Quick & Easy Sponge Nail Polish Remover Acetone Free.

Catrice

Moving on to Catrice, I have three new mono eyeshadow shades:

860 The Beauty And The Beige*

890 Here Comes The Bright!*

900 Li-La Bamba*

A few weeks after the event, I went ahead and bought on of the Velvet Matt Smokey Eyes Pencil in the shade 020 Avokhaki but I can't remember how much it was.

Besides introducing new colours to their exisiting lipstick ranges, Catrice have totally replaced the Ultimate Shine Lipsticks with a new range, Luminous Lipsticks and here I have the shades 030 Undercover Nude* and 040 Pretty Little Valentine*.

For the face, Catrice have a new foundation and concealer. I like both of these products very much and I use them nearly every day because they are so light in texture. Shown here are the Catrice 12h Matt Mousse Makeup 010 Soft Ivory* and Catrice All Round Coverstick 010 Nude*.

Lastly, here are some nail polish innovations from the brand. Like sister brand Essence, Catrice now also has a gel base and top coat designed for use with their polishes as part of a three step system. They also have a new range of colours and an Ombre Top Coat.